Arunachal Pradesh deputy chief minister Chowna Mein on Saturday presented the Luminous Lummer Dai Literary Award 2019 to Tagang Taki of Siang district for his enormous contribution in the field of literature during the North-East Frontier Agency days.
Instituted by the Arunachal Pradesh Literary Society (APLS), the award was presented to Taki on the 79th birth anniversary celebration of Lummer Dai, the doyen of Assamese literature.
While recalling the contributions of Lummer Dai in the field of literature, Mein while addressing a large gathering at the Jawarlal Nehru Museum, Itanagar said Dai is the pride of Arunachal Pradesh and a leading light in the world of Assamese literature ‘Sahitya Surjya’.
Also read: Sabha, several bodies fete Lummer Dai Award winner Rongbong Terang
Mein further exhorted the youths to draw inspiration from Dai and carry forward his legacy.
The deputy chief minister said Arunachal has a large number of tribes having distinct, variant cultures and heritages and there are so much of subjects in offer for a writer to write.
He also advocated preservation of oral literature in both digital and written form.
While lauding the effort of APLS, Mein called upon them to encourage more literary activities in the state and assured them to support in their endeavour.
Earlier, Mein paid floral tribute to literary icon Lummer Dai.
APLS president and Sahitya Academy awardee Yeshe Dorjee Thongchi, general secretary Batem Pertin and senior journalist Pradeep Kumar Behera also spoke on the occasion.
Also present was former commissioner Hage Kojeen, members of APLS, budding writers and students from various schools.